Sources: Andy Patrick Attempted To Steer State Business To His Firm

S.C. Rep. Andy Patrick has a lengthy history of trying to steer government business to companies he owns – including “deliberate efforts” to manipulate the state’s procurement codes to benefit himself financially, sources tell FITS.

Patrick is one of several “Republicans in Name Only” seeking the first congressional district seat vacated earlier this year by newly-appointed U.S. Sen. Tim Scott.

A former Secret Service agent who runs a corporate security firm in Beaufort, S.C., Patrick brands himself on the campaign trail as a conservative warrior and defender of “Lowcountry values.”

“We need to send a message to Washington, D.C., that we do not value Washington, D.C., values,” he recently told The Hilton Head Island Packet. “We don’t identify with those values. We believe in Lowcountry values. Lowcountry values of strong community, strong commitment to service and passing on a better future to tomorrow’s generation.”

According to our sources, Patrick pressured the S.C. Department of Labor Licensing and Regulation (SCLLR) to hire his firm to handle its employee verification measures in conjunction with the state’s new immigration law – which he supported. Not only that, sources at the agency say Patrick attempted to manipulate the bidding process in an effort to give his firm an unfair advantage.

SCLLR eventually decided against hiring Patrick’s company.

Since his 2010 election, Patrick has been disavowed by fiscal conservatives in Beaufort County.